Honoring the CF Experience: Invisible Illness

Living with an illness like cystic fibrosis (CF), the symptoms can often be "invisible" to others. Many people who have not been impacted with chronic illness in their own lives may find this hard to comprehend.

Just because someone looks a certain way on the outside, does not mean they are not struggling or managing an illness that impacts their daily life.

When judging those who "look fine" for using something intended for those with health conditions, people can feel justified. They might truly believe they are defending a vulnerable population. But in reality, they could be making someone's day harder who does not owe them an explanation.

Many symptoms of cystic fibrosis are not things you would notice just by taking in someone's appearance. This can be harmful to CFers (and others in the chronic illness community), as they should not have to share their personal health information with strangers in order to utilize resources.

Imagine the time and energy (not to mention the frustration) it would take to be addressed by someone in public who is arguing if you "deserve" to utilize those resources.

When you are juggling symptoms and treatments on top of the countless other parts of the human experience, it can be a struggle everyday.

That's why it's important to lift others up and honor their experiences, as each is unique and cannot be explained with just one look.

To read more about invisible illness, check out more of our articles on Cystic-Fibrosis.com:

You Judged Me For My Invisible Illness and You Didn't Even Know It
Invisible Disability
Others May Not “See” It. But I Feel It.